


Cold Eyes

by Kaiosea



Category: Pokemon + Nobunaga no Yabou | Pokemon Conquest
Genre: Canon Compliant, Gen, Mitsuhide's Episode, Pokemon, Pokemon Conquest - Freeform, Post-Canon, Post-Game
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-25
Updated: 2019-12-25
Packaged: 2021-02-26 21:27:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,213
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21841222
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kaiosea/pseuds/Kaiosea
Summary: Mitsuhide turned his back on the battlefield, hearing his Lapras skittering across the ice to comfort him.Follows Mitsuhide's post-main game episode, "Tragic Determination." Canon/game compliant.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 6
Collections: Yuletide 2019





	Cold Eyes

**Author's Note:**

  * For [megvad](https://archiveofourown.org/users/megvad/gifts).



> Thank you for requesting fic for this tiny fandom, megvad. I hope that you like it!

Mitsuhide turned his back on the battlefield, hearing his Lapras skittering across the ice to comfort him. 

This wasn’t what he had wanted. 

Although he wouldn’t show his former lord Nobunaga the satisfaction of knowing how deeply he’d been affected, Mitsuhide’s chest felt tight. 

Lapras beached himself on the snow, flopping up at Mitsuhide’s side. 

Mitsuhide put his hand on Lapras’s shell, feeling the curved shiny ridges. The presence of the larger Pokemon next to him was comforting, as well as the assurance that the battles of the month were finally done. 

He sighed, knowing that he had to bring himself to move on and take care of his Pokemon. 

His loyal army of Warriors’ Pokmeon were in tough straits as well. Hidemitsu’s Weavile and Gracia’s Froslass had fainted in the battle, while No’s Mismagius and Toshimitsu’s Walrein were slowly making their ways over to their linked Warriors across the slippery ice of the battlefield. 

Nobunaga had already recalled his Pokemon and left. 

With their roles now reversed, Mitsuhide could have asked Nobunaga to stay in Nixtorm, but he had not had the energy. Instead, he deployed Nobunaga to the neighboring kingdom of Dragnor, with the understanding that now, Nobunaga was under Mitsuhide’s command. 

As for Mitsuhide, he intended to take a long, deserved recovery with his Pokemon. 

“What do you think, Lapras?” He murmured. 

Lapras agreed with a high-pitched noise. 

*

When Mitsuhide returned to the Ice Temple of Nixtorm from where he ruled, he discovered that his most loyal Warriors had prepared a meal. 

The food was cold, as was customary in the Kingdom where winter reigned year-round. It was possible to make hot food, but the temperature dropped too quickly for it to be eaten as intended, most of the time. 

Mitsuhide did not mind. He had grown up here, so he found the cold noodles and fermented vegetables to be delicious. Meanwhile, his Pokemon, all Ice-type, were content with the cold and frozen Pokemon food and Ponigiri that the Warriors had thoughtfully set out. 

Gracia, Toshimitsu, and Hidemitsu had proven themselves in battle time and time again, but Mitsuhide appreciated their presence outside of war as well. 

As he ate, he thought of Toshimitsu’s Walrein in particular, how it had evolved from Sealeo to Walrein right after the battle with Nobunaga, proud of its new form and contributions. 

Mitsuhide’s Lapras ate with the other Warriors’ Pokemon as well. Weavile, Froslass, Walrein, and Mismagius sat in the icy grand hall, on the floor of marble. 

Weavile’s claws clicked on the glassy floor as she ate, while Lapras and Walrein, as two of the larger Pokemon, sat almost flipper to flipper. Froslass and Mismagius floated in the air, their ornate bowls of food levitating along with them. 

Mitsuhide sat in the grand hall of his kingdom, proud if not content over his victory over Nobunaga to unite Ransei. 

At that moment, he heard an explosion coming from outside his kingdom. 

He froze for a second, and all of the nearby Pokemon started to shuffle towards the entrance to the hall. 

Mitsuhide steeled himself to battle once again. If Nobunaga had returned, he’d regret it. 

He heard Lapras squelching along the floor, with Walrein thundering behind him. Mismagius and Froslass floated towards him ominously. 

Weavile charged on ahead, with Mitsuhide not far behind. 

He arrived into the frozen courtyard and felt his heart standing still. 

A giant ice-blue bird stood in front of him on an equally enormous icy peak, full of ridged glassy shards of ice and surrounded, like everything else before him, with snow. 

Neither of these things, the legendary bird or the snowy peak, had existed when he retired to his kingdom only a few hours ago. 

The bird was magnificent; that was obvious. It cawed upwards and beat its wings, and sang a song that split the air with a melancholy wind. 

Mitsuhide couldn’t take his eyes off of the bird. He had only heard legends of Articuno, and seen pictures that he now knew were completely inaccurate, a misrepretntation of the Pokemon’s full glamour. 

Seeing him, the flying Pokemon stared him down. 

Its next move was to crystallize a freezing wind, bringing it down on top of Mitsuhide and his Pokemon. 

Mitsuhide understood what it meant. 

Shouting at the top of his lungs, he called his Warriors into battle once again. 

Though exhausted, they faithfully came down from the bedrooms they’d retired to, their faces just as shocked as Mitsuhide’s when they saw the scene transpiring in front of them. 

Articuno was fiercly showering the Ice Pokemon surrounding it in cold, attempting to freeze them out. 

Its first attack hit Mismagius with a cold wave. The Ghost Pokemon felt a chill before falling out of the air coated in frostbite, frozen for an indeterminate amount of time. 

Weavile did her best to ascend the icy peak, her sharp claws digging into the terrain as she attempted to make use of her strong climbing abilities. 

Mitsuhide urged his Lapras forward, as well. Rushing forward and opening his mouth, Lapras let out a strong, freezing Ice Beam towards Articuno, which threw the legendary bird off balance. 

Mitsuhide felt the thrill of battle again, despite the cold tiredness in his bones. Knowing that the Warriors standing slightly behind him were willing to still give their all for him, and that the Pokemon by their sides were equally engaged, was enough to keep his resolve impenetrable. 

Froslass distracted Articuno with a feint to the side, and in that opening both Walrein and Lapras, side by side, hit Articuno with their strongest Ice attacks. 

Articuno’s wings beat a little slower, and while the bird’s attention was on Froslass, Mitsuhide darted forward, as close to Articuno as he could get. 

He had a certain uniquely cold feeling about the Pokemon, similar to the one that he felt for Lapras. In his world, ice and coldness was a special attribute, something beautiful and prized, and in this coldness he found the confidence to attempt a Link with Articuno. 

Clad in only his lightest armor, the cold, dry air seeping into his skin, Mitsuhide climbed up the ice, his boots used to the slippery surface, to reach Articuno. 

Up close, he realized that they were about the same height. 

He closed his eyes and drew in a long, deeply unsatisfying breath of cold air. 

Then he began to concentrate. 

He could feel the presence of the bird next to him, and he concentrated on keeping the chaining of the links together in his mind. The pressure built quickly, just as linking always did, and he felt an overwhelming presence in his mind now as well. 

He found the spirit of the Pokemon to be cold like himself. 

When he opened his eyes, he found that the storm was raging, but Articuno had stopped attacking. 

As he waited, the snow began to fall less frequently, and his Lapras and his Warriors’ Pokemon stopped attacking when they saw that Articuno was still, and that their lord had successfully found his next perfect link. 

Mitsuhide almost felt it was a shame that there were no more battles left to be won, because he knew that with Articuno by his side, he would be colder and more resolute than ever.

**Author's Note:**

> For fun, I thought it might be interesting to list some of the game mechanics I used as reference points, because I like the way they work in the game and I'm obsessed with it. 
> 
> Mitsuhide - “Tragic Determination” Episode - Perfect Link with Lapras and Articuno - Warrior Skills are Cold Eyes and Crack Shot  
> Articuno - Blizzard - Frostbite - Appears along with Icy Peak after “Tragic Determination” is completed (and Nixtorm’s Snowy Mountain and Sky Garden are completely upgraded)
> 
> Weavile - Ability High Rise
> 
> Only Mismagius can be frozen in the battle


End file.
